TEHRAN - Expediency Council Chairman Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and World Union of Muslim Scholars Chairman Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi called on Muslims to maintain unity in a discussion aired by Qatar’s Al-Jazeera satellite television network on Wednesday.

Rafsanjani expounded on Iran’s efforts to promote Islamic unity.

“The enemies of Islam are seeking to create division between Shias and Sunnis,” he noted, adding that the enemy’s goal is to dominate the Islamic world through inciting sectarian violence.

The U.S. wants to control the Islamic world’s vast energy resources and its population of 1.5 billion, he added.

Rafsanjani said that it is the responsibility of all Shia and Sunni Muslim ulema to resist the plots hatched by the United States and the Zionist regime and to avoid divisive issues. Resistance is the legitimate right of the Iraqi people, he noted, adding, “Unfortunately, some hard-line groups kill innocent Iraqis, and we have repeatedly condemned terrorist attacks in Iraq.”

Rafsanjani insisted that the facilitation of the active involvement of all Iraqi groups in the country’s political life, respect for the Constitution, and a withdrawal of foreign troops would help restore security.

He went on to say that Iran made many efforts to help the Sunni Bosnian and Palestinian peoples attain their rights.

“Our position in Iran is an Islamic one and is based on fostering unity between Muslims,” the former Iranian president noted.